The Googleplex is one of the company's 23 U.S. and Canadian locations. Google also maintains 23 European locations, 14 Asia/Pacific locations, 5 Middle East locations, and 3 Latin American locations.[1][dated info]

Facilities and history

The four core buildings, totaling 47,038 square meters ({{rnd/bExpression error: Unexpected < operator|Expression error: Unexpected < operator|(Expression error: Unexpected < operator)|Expression error: Unexpected < operator}} sq ft), were built for and originally occupied by Silicon Graphics (SGI). The office space and corporate campus is located within a larger 26-acre ({{rnd/bExpression error: Unexpected < operator|Expression error: Unexpected < operator|(Expression error: Unexpected < operator)|Expression error: Unexpected < operator}} m2) site that contains Charleston Park, a 5-acre ({{rnd/bExpression error: Unexpected < operator|Expression error: Unexpected < operator|(Expression error: Unexpected < operator)|Expression error: Unexpected < operator}} m2) public park; improved access to Permanente Creek; and public trails that connect the corporate site to Shoreline Park and the Bay Trail. The project, launched in 1994 to reclaim a former industrial brownfield, was a creative collaboration between SGI, STUDIOS Architecture in San Francisco, SWA Group of San Francisco and Sausalito, and the Planning and Community Development Agency of the City of Mountain View.[citation needed] The objective was to develop in complementary fashion the privately-owned corporate headquarters and adjoining public greenspace. Key design decisions placed parking for nearly 2000 cars underground, enabling SWA to integrate the two open spaces with water features, shallow pools, fountains, pathways, and plazas. The project was completed in 1997. The ASLA noted in 1999 that the SGI project was a significant departure from typical corporate campuses, challenging conventional thinking about private and public space.

The former SGI facilities were leased by Google beginning in 2003.[2]
In June 2006, Google purchased some of Silicon Graphics' properties, including the Googleplex, for $319 million.[3][4]

Since the buildings are of relatively low height, the complex covers a large area. The interior of the headquarters is furnished with items like shade lamps and giant rubber balls. The lobby contains a piano and a projection of current live Google search queries. The facilities include a gym (Building 40), free laundry rooms (Buildings 40 and 42), two small swimming pools, a sand volleyball court, and eleven cafeterias of diverse selection. Google has also installed replicas of SpaceShipOne and a dinosaur skeleton.[5][6]

Since 2007 the site has featured a series of solar panels, covering the rooftops of eight buildings and two solar carports capable of producing 1.6 megawatts of electricity. At the time of installation Google believed it to be the largest in the United States among corporations. The panels provide the power needed for 30% of the peak electricity demand in their solar-powered buildings.[7]

Location

The Googleplex is located between Charleston Road, Amphitheatre Parkway, and Shoreline Boulevard in north Mountain View, California close to the Shoreline Parkwetlands. Employees living in San Francisco or the East Bay may take a wifi-enabled Google subsidized shuttle to and from work. It is powered by biodiesel.[8]